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opinion on political correctness?

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Warning: this may damage/wound some fragile egos:

A**holes like to use the word politically correct in a negative light because they want to be able to say messed up/offensive things (i.e. ableist, racist, sexist, homophobic, etc.) but not be called out on the fact that they are saying these things. So, they use politically correct in a negative way and call everyone else sensitive. When in reality, they're the sensitive ones because they can't handle being called an ableist a**hole when they are saying ableist s**t.

I use it in a negative light because it's limiting something I believe everyone has a right to: Speech and an opinion. Now, do I think that it's okay to call people slurs or be completely derogatory to someone? No. Because that's just not being a good person. I don't have an issue making jokes with people because a joke is just a joke. It's to make light of something, or it's just used to have a good time. If we stuck with having humor that had to conform to some one group of people's opinions, humor would be dead. If we had to conform to this "PC-movement" where everyone has to think the exact same way, it wouldn't be right, it'd be violating a basic right. Freedom of speech is important, having an opinion is important. Nobody's going to agree on the exact same thing every single time anyways. That's impossible. If the person you don't agree with really bothers you that much, you can try to chime in with your thoughts. Nothing wrong with that. Maybe both of you will learn something. Maybe you don't like a joke? Too bad, ignore it because it's making someone else's life just the tiniest bit better. What's so wrong with that, people enjoying themselves? As long as it's in the right context, there's nothing wrong with a little humor here and there. I mean, it's a lot different than killing or beating someone just because of race, politics, etc. Everyone's entitled to their own opinions.


Also, I'd just like to point out that, your claim doesn't apply to everyone, despite what you say. I really don't give a damn what some someone calls me. Hell, my friends and I even like to make jokes about eachother, but we all know we don't hate eachother. Maybe some people are going to feel that way, I'm sure there's plenty of people who your claim applies to. Just not everyone.




I don't know if I got my point across, or if I even had one but I really just felt like stating a few opinions.
 
I use it in a negative light because it's limiting something I believe everyone has a right to: Speech and an opinion. Now, do I think that it's okay to call people slurs or be completely derogatory to someone? No. Because that's just not being a good person. I don't have an issue making jokes with people because a joke is just a joke. It's to make light of something, or it's just used to have a good time. If we stuck with having humor that had to conform to some one group of people's opinions, humor would be dead. If we had to conform to this "PC-movement" where everyone has to think the exact same way, it wouldn't be right, it'd be violating a basic right. Freedom of speech is important, having an opinion is important. Nobody's going to agree on the exact same thing every single time anyways. That's impossible. If the person you don't agree with really bothers you that much, you can try to chime in with your thoughts. Nothing wrong with that. Maybe both of you will learn something. Maybe you don't like a joke? Too bad, ignore it because it's making someone else's life just the tiniest bit better. What's so wrong with that, people enjoying themselves? As long as it's in the right context, there's nothing wrong with a little humor here and there. I mean, it's a lot different than killing or beating someone just because of race, politics, etc. Everyone's entitled to their own opinions.


Also, I'd just like to point out that, your claim doesn't apply to everyone, despite what you say. I really don't give a damn what some someone calls me. Hell, my friends and I even like to make jokes about eachother, but we all know we don't hate eachother. Maybe some people are going to feel that way, I'm sure there's plenty of people who your claim applies to. Just not everyone.




I don't know if I got my point across, or if I even had one but I really just felt like stating a few opinions.

I agree, it's a basic human right to think what they want, to hold opinions and to express them. Not being allowed to tell a joke because it clashes with some SJW's beliefs is oppressing their right to freedom of speech. When you're saying something genuinely with malicious intent or because you have a prejudice or phobia of someone is different to telling a joke without meaning what you're saying.
 
Yes, there's also a difference between saying something to try and be funny and saying something with malicious intent and trying to degrade that race/gender/sexuality

something something a community acting like idiots will eventually be flooded by actual idiots
 
In my experience, "political correctness" is bigot speak for "i want to be able to freely spout racist/sexist/homophobic/ect. garbage without being called out for it".

And if the only jokes you can make involve making fun of people that are different than you, then news flash; you have a terrible sense of humor.
 
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In my experience, "political correctness" is bigot speak for "i want to be able to freely spout racist/sexist/homophobic/ect. garbage without being called out for it".

And if the only jokes you can make involve making fun of people that are different than you, then news flash; you have a terrible sense of humor.

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There's still hope for humanity yet.
 
I agree with a lot of comments here about how bigots use the term to justify their ****ty behavior, but I also do enjoy jokes that aren't overly offensive, particularly jokes about stereotypes. We're laughing at how silly the stereotype is, not the people themselves. It's a slippery slope with humor. But I think as long as you're aware of race and gender and other important things, taking part in jokes of that nature is acceptable.
 
This thread has been reopened after we closed it to address some reports. Please remember to be respectful of others' opinions, especially when it comes to potentially controversial subjects like this. Thank you.
 
I don't like the term "political correctness." I think that everyone should just try harder to be nicer and more respectful to one another. If you want to crack a joke, then that's fine, but just think about it before you say it, and be prepared to apologize if someone's feelings get hurt.

I realize this is a very simple answer but I really don't think that it boils down to much more than this.
 
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I think that's because usually, when a black person is called the N word by another race, it is usually in a derogatory manner. So the original use of the word has not yet died, and is still racist. But when black people use it around each other, they usually do use it casually, in a friendly manner, so they trust each other to use the word in the way they're okay with. Other people are not trusted to do the same. It makes sense to me, and I can't really say much against it because what do I know about that stuff. It's almost the same way I feel to being called a chink. It's never been used by another race in a friendly way, and only when people have been racist towards me, so I would not be okay with others just throwing that word around. But I'm not going to cry about it if it happens either, which it has, many times.

I can see how a word can have different meanings based on the context in which it's used, but that context should not be solely based on the gender / sexuality / race / etc. of the person whose mouth the word came out of. That is a double standard in itself. It also reinforces the belief that people of different races, genders, and sexualities are separate clans instead of "just like everyone else". It's okay if minority groups want to "reclaim" derogatory terms and give them a more positive meaning, but then they shouldn't be shocked or outraged if and when outside groups start using them too. Words are words, and the same words should have the same meaning no matter whose mouth they come out of if we are really aiming for equality.
 
In my experience, "political correctness" is bigot speak for "i want to be able to freely spout racist/sexist/homophobic/ect. garbage without being called out for it".

And if the only jokes you can make involve making fun of people that are different than you, then news flash; you have a terrible sense of humor.

But they're just jokes. We'd be better off being programmed machines if we couldn't tell jokes. It's sensitive people like this that ruin it for everybody.

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"Why did the chicken cross the road" is a suicide joke. All comedy is offensive. Just let us live.
 
I can see how a word can have different meanings based on the context in which it's used, but that context should not be solely based on the gender / sexuality / race / etc. of the person whose mouth the word came out of. That is a double standard in itself. It also reinforces the belief that people of different races, genders, and sexualities are separate clans instead of "just like everyone else". It's okay if minority groups want to "reclaim" derogatory terms and give them a more positive meaning, but then they shouldn't be shocked or outraged if and when outside groups start using them too. Words are words, and the same words should have the same meaning no matter whose mouth they come out of if we are really aiming for equality.

I wish I had more of a solid opinion on this subject, but I honestly don't know what is the right thing and the wrong thing. I err on the side of simply not using derogatory terms. I completely understand what you are saying, but I also understand why black people want to keep the word within their community. It's just something that I cannot completely relate to until I have experienced it myself, and like my example, I don't like being called a chink by others (including other Asians), but I sometimes make fun of myself and call myself that. It's just a very grey area with the N word, and I still see it as a bad word for myself to say, but I don't get offended when I hear it from a black person (unless it's being used negatively). But I also don't mind when people sing along to lyrics and that word is in it and they say it. So.. yeah.. just a very grey area.
 
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It disgusts me. I can't participate any any political discussion because people can't take a joke. It's probably for the best, though.
 
I wish I had more of a solid opinion on this subject, but I honestly don't know what is the right thing and the wrong thing. I err on the side of simply not using derogatory terms. I completely understand what you are saying, but I also understand why black people want to keep the word within their community. It's just something that I cannot completely relate to until I have experienced it myself, and like my example, I don't like being called a chink by others (including other Asians), but I sometimes make fun of myself and call myself that. It's just a very grey area with the N word, and I still see it as a bad word for myself to say, but I don't get offended when I hear it from a black person (unless it's being used negatively). But I also don't mind when people sing along to lyrics and that word is in it and they say it. So.. yeah.. just a very grey area.

There is indeed a lot of grey area, which is why people get frustrated when they get called a bigot for saying something which falls into that grey area.
 
I'm new to this forum, but I've read comments on lgbtq stuff, it escalates easily so I'm not bothering into it but people should respect people on their political opinions
 
I can see how a word can have different meanings based on the context in which it's used, but that context should not be solely based on the gender / sexuality / race / etc. of the person whose mouth the word came out of. That is a double standard in itself. It also reinforces the belief that people of different races, genders, and sexualities are separate clans instead of "just like everyone else". It's okay if minority groups want to "reclaim" derogatory terms and give them a more positive meaning, but then they shouldn't be shocked or outraged if and when outside groups start using them too. Words are words, and the same words should have the same meaning no matter whose mouth they come out of if we are really aiming for equality.

I think that you're right that words *should* have the same meaning regardless of who used them, but the fact of the matter is that they don't. Words have history, words have weight

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Also I'm a little curious as to why people want to use the N word. I can't imagine why anyone would really want to use it? Other than black people reclaiming the slur and trying to turn it into something positive (like how LGBTQ+ people are trying to reclaim queer) I don't really see any other context for it to be used, except for maybe in a literature or history lesson.
 
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I think that you're right that words *should* have the same meaning regardless of who used them, but the fact of the matter is that they don't. Words have history, words have weight

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Also I'm a little curious as to why people want to use the N word. I can't imagine why anyone would really want to use it? Other than black people reclaiming the slur and trying to turn it into something positive (like how LGBTQ+ people are trying to reclaim queer) I don't really see any other context for it to be used, except for maybe in a literature or history lesson.

Yes, words have history, but given that history, it makes even less sense for the groups most offended by those words to use the words themselves. Like I'm supposed to understand the history of the n word and how terrible it is and thus never use it, but black people can just casually toss the n word around without understanding or caring about the terrible history behind it. If the history is that irrelevant to people that they choose to use the word when there are tons of other words people can use to call each other, then why should I get a history lecture if I use the word?
 
Yes, words have history, but given that history, it makes even less sense for the groups most offended by those words to use the words themselves. Like I'm supposed to understand the history of the n word and how terrible it is and thus never use it, but black people can just casually toss the n word around without understanding or caring about the terrible history behind it. If the history is that irrelevant to people that they choose to use the word when there are tons of other words people can use to call each other, then why should I get a history lecture if I use the word?

I don't want to argue, but I do think it's a little rude to say that Black people use the N word carelessly and that they don't understand it. If anything, I'd think that they would care the most about the history of the N word. I believe the reason (and correct me if I'm wrong, I'm not Black and don't feel that I am an expert on this subject) that the N word was used amongst black individuals was because they didn't want the word to be used against them, and they decided to make it into something of their own. That's sort of the idea behind reclaiming slurs. I don't really know that we're at the point where the word has been completely distanced from its original meaning--or if that point will ever truly be reached--since the history of it is still very, very recent. I also disagree with you on the topic of relevance. I think the word is relevant to Black people, their personal struggle with regards to race, and to their personal history, amongst other things.

I'm not advocating for you to use or to not use the N word, but I think it's important to treat it as more than "just a word."
 
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To me the current idea of political correctness is unattainable. There are so many different ways each individual wants to be treated, and political correctness seeks to appeal to each individual. We'll sorry guys, there's several billion people on this planet who have different wants and can find hundreds of billion things offensive. If one side of the spectrum can start silencing the other, then the reverse can happen, too.

I do think people should be decent to one another, but it goes both ways. If someone accidentally misgenders you, or asks how many kids you have when you have none nor the desire to have any, or assumes something about you without even knowing you, take it in stride. If they apologize great, if they don't, or shrug it off. People aren't perfect and we can't force them to be perfect. What we can do is be accepting of their faults and lead by example on how we want the world to be.

Personally I don't want a world that falls to two sides refusing to compromise and arguments that just turn into name-calling.
 
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